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Lerit Lab

@lablerit.bsky.social
1.3K followers 462 following 297 posts

Associate Professor of Cell Biology at Emory SOM. We study centrosomes and the RNAs that live there.

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Lerit Lab @lablerit.bsky.social · 07/08/2026
Lindsey and I were working on wrapping up a project together recently highlighted by Emory Magazine, and I’m hoping to get our paper written up soon. She loved superplots, so we will add them. magazine.emory.edu/issues/2026/...
Photo of Lindsey with her lab, Dorothy and student Anna, & donor, Dr Jaffe.
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Lerit Lab @lablerit.bsky.social · 30/06/2026
Today is the day! We will kick off #EMBOrnaLocalization with a welcome reception and opening keynote by Matthias Hentze. Be sure to swing by the registration desk at 4 to pick up your badge and meeting materials! Full schedule here: meetings.embo.org/event/26-rna...
Photo of the Atlantic Ocean. White capped swells crash on dark rocks with trodden sand in the foreground. The cloudless sky is a gradient of  various colors of blue.
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Lerit Lab @lablerit.bsky.social · 29/06/2026
chocolate. It works on kids and adults.
Photo of a candy display featuring various shapes and colors of chocolate
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Lerit Lab @lablerit.bsky.social · 29/05/2026
My kid doesn’t love reading, but he does love Lego. So, we set a reading goal toward a sweet set he has his eyes on. 📖
Stack of 5 books, each stamped with a library mark.
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Lerit Lab @lablerit.bsky.social · 26/05/2026
I did not have being sick on my long weekend bingo card, but at least I got to read my friend’s debut novel
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Lerit Lab @lablerit.bsky.social · 05/05/2026
Today is Revenge of the Fifth, Cinqo de Mayo, and Taco Tuesday. Sounds spicy! 🔥🔥🔥
A spicy margarita
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Lerit Lab @lablerit.bsky.social · 27/02/2026
Congrats to BCDB grad student Anna on passing her PhD qualifying exam today 👏🏽 Brava! 🥳 And thanks to the exam committee for their helpful direction.
Anna cuts into a cake while members of the lab look on
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Lerit Lab @lablerit.bsky.social · 05/02/2026
Did you know this #EMBOrnaLocalization workshop has been continuously held for over 30 years? Come see why people come back again and again. Learn more and register here: meetings.embo.org/event/26-rna...
Meeting poster lists organizers, travel and childcare grant availability, and indicates this meeting will be held 30 June through 4 July 2026 in Portugal. An image shows a magenta neuron with tiny yellow dots of RNA inside.
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Lerit Lab @lablerit.bsky.social · 01/02/2026
Aww, my little guy knows what’s up 😝
A line from a child’s schoolwork asking “What does “Dr.” mean?”

The response: “p.h.d. Person”
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Lerit Lab @lablerit.bsky.social · 27/01/2026
As a scientist, I can appreciate this level of accuracy! (Look at how many significant digits are in these @legogroup.bsky.social measurements!)
Image of a shipping invoice of Lego parts. The quantity and total weight in grams, as well as a graphic of the pieces, are shown. Weights are listed to the hundred thousandth decimal position!
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Lerit Lab @lablerit.bsky.social · 02/01/2026
NGL, I had to look it up. Let’s go!
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Lerit Lab @lablerit.bsky.social · 01/01/2026
Checking in on my flies, keeping the plants alive. This beauty is over 20 years old! (Yes, Lewis, but also this Christmas cactus gifted to me by a former boss from one of my ugrad jobs) Happy 2026!
A Christmas cactus in bloom sits in a shelf next to a framed photo of Sir Lewis Hamilton
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Lerit Lab @lablerit.bsky.social · 21/12/2025
A work of art! Bonus: little guy thinks the cookie tastes good.
View of gingerbread house with some tastefully decorated gingerbread pplClose up view of the stain glass gingerbread windowCurb appeal of our gingerbread house
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Lerit Lab @lablerit.bsky.social · 20/12/2025
Go big or go gingerbread home.
Gingerbread cut with candy stain glass windows.
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Lerit Lab @lablerit.bsky.social · 15/12/2025
The lab did a great job getting us in the running for our department’s door decorating contest! Very creative theme: Rudolph the red-eyed fruit fly! 🪰🎅🏼🎄🎁
A lab door decorated with a Christmas holiday scene featuring a sleigh led by 8 large fruit flies
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Lerit Lab @lablerit.bsky.social · 11/12/2025
I also got a good show!
Sunset with the Atlanta skyline in the distance
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Lerit Lab @lablerit.bsky.social · 18/11/2025
If you’re going to put up your holiday decorations this early, then I’m going to make myself a pie the week before Thanksgiving.
A slice of pie on a plate with a dollop of whipped cream on top
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Lerit Lab @lablerit.bsky.social · 12/11/2025
One of those days slash years. No, it’s not ok. Yes, that is a clone helmet on my kitchen table.
Pickle-tini with a clone wars helmet in the background.
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Lerit Lab @lablerit.bsky.social · 28/10/2025
Predawn view from the office
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Lerit Lab @lablerit.bsky.social · 24/07/2025
Our lab is looking to recruit a new postdoc to join our team. You can visit us at leritlab.org to learn more and submit applications here: faculty-emory.icims.com/jobs/149999/... (or scan the QR in the ad below!) Review will commence in early August.
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Lerit Lab @lablerit.bsky.social · 22/07/2025
A new preprint! The CPEB ortholog Orb2 regulates brain size through the TRIM-NHL RNA-binding protein, Brain tumor www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1... We examined how an imbalance in neurodevelopment can cause brain growth disorders, like microcephaly. Congrats to grad student Taylor & the whole team!
Image shows a fluorescence micrograph of two, age-matched Drosophila larval brains. The brain on the left is from the WT control, and the brain on the right is from an orb2 null mutant. The orb2 mutant brain is much smaller than the control. These brains were stained for DAPI to measure the volume of the optic lobes (dashed area).
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Lerit Lab @lablerit.bsky.social · 26/06/2025
Our lab @emoryuniversity.bsky.social Dept. of Cell Biology is hiring a research technician! This position is ideal for someone who enjoys research, organization, and working in a team. Come for a few years and publish with us, or stay to build a career. staff-emory.icims.com/jobs/149068/...
In this light microscopy image of dividing cells within a Drosophila embryo, multiple centrosomes are labeled in cyan. Each centrosome is surrounded by a concentration of orange fluorescent dots, showing the localization of a model mRNA via single molecule detection.
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Lerit Lab @lablerit.bsky.social · 16/05/2025
Our protocol describing how we detect beautiful microtubules (and actin) in Drosophila embryos is now up at Current Protocols. We also added tips if you also want to image RNA via smFISH (see pic). If your institution does not subscribe, here's a free link: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/share/author...
Cover image for the journal Traffic (July 2018) featuring an image captured by Dr. Pearl Ryder of mitotic spindles (green microtubules), condensed chromosomes (blue), and single molecule fluorescence in situ hybridization (smFISH) for Centrocortin mRNA (magenta)
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Lerit Lab @lablerit.bsky.social · 11/05/2025
Check out our latest in G3 academic.oup.com/g3journal/ar...
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Lerit Lab @lablerit.bsky.social · 25/04/2025
Here, we examine how a model mRNA, Pericentrin-like protein (Plp), localizes to centrosomes. We show ✅microtubules, active translation, and specific regions in the Plp CDS direct localization 🗺️ We propose the PCM scaffold serves as a molecular timer ⏰ regulating temporal oscillations of RNA
fluorescence microscopy image showing Plp mRNA (magenta) localizing to centrosomes (green) in an early Drosophila embryo also labeled for actin (white) and DNA (blue)
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Lerit Lab @lablerit.bsky.social · 21/02/2025
Not having a good day. Taking a break from too much service work to help my son expand his Lego police photo book.
Lego police chasing a Lego bad guy
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Lerit Lab @lablerit.bsky.social · 19/02/2025
Remember when the biggest annoyance of the day was that paper you were reviewing didn’t include line numbers. Or used justified font?
Kermit the frog taking a drag on a cigarette.
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Lerit Lab @lablerit.bsky.social · 14/02/2025
A little palate cleanser for your timeline, Valentine’s edition. 🔥😘🧑‍🚒
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Lerit Lab @lablerit.bsky.social · 13/02/2025
I sense a disturbance in the force.
A meme of Anakin approaching the Jedi council about the NIH funding freeze.
1) this council will not discuss Pending grants. 2) But master a federal judge ordered Trump to unfreeze and NIH grants. 3) this council is now canceled.
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Lerit Lab @lablerit.bsky.social · 24/01/2025
I made my son a blastoderm embryo for his meal.
Bread covered with peanut butter with raisins arranged only around the edge
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Lerit Lab @lablerit.bsky.social · 31/12/2024
A little reset before the new year
Boy running through a low surf
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Lerit Lab @lablerit.bsky.social · 06/12/2024
Looking forward to attending #ASCB2024 @ascbiology.bsky.social Grad student Joey is presenting a poster and will also be a panelist. Postdoc Junnan (starting new lab Jan ‘25) has a poster and flash talk. I will be there too! Come say hi. Positions available!
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Lerit Lab @lablerit.bsky.social · 19/11/2024
It’s not the right allele for 11/18, but it was fun touring the @bdsc.bsky.social last year
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Lerit Lab @lablerit.bsky.social · 16/11/2024
Tried at a party, then made it for my son. Check out the licked candles next to the plate 😋 If you like chocolate, try this one: smittenkitchen.com/2007/07/doub...
Little boy eating a slice of chocolate cake.
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Lerit Lab @lablerit.bsky.social · 11/11/2024
Just wrapped up my first semester co-teaching one of our grants classes, so if Emory’s F31 stats take a dive next year, we know who to blame 😉
Photo of a projected slide showing NIH F31 projects funded per organization.
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Lerit Lab @lablerit.bsky.social · 17/01/2024
When you receive a gift of flies from another lab, but they have mites👀
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Lerit Lab @lablerit.bsky.social · 14/01/2024
I’ve never seen anything like this, but my nephew’s high school team placed 2nd in an nyc robotics competition. Pretty amazing to see what these students made! The robots pick up those discs, move them to a drop zone, and do some final tricks (hang on pole, throw a paper airplane?!) for points.
Screenshot of a robotics competition among high school students
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Lerit Lab @lablerit.bsky.social · 29/12/2023
Enjoyed a lovely afternoon at the nature preserve just across from lab with my little one. He fed plenty of geese and ducks and even spotted a blue heron.
Geese, ducks, blue heron
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Lerit Lab @lablerit.bsky.social · 03/12/2023
Check out this exclusive content 😂 our lab elves have been hard at work generating beautiful microscopy images repurposed to decorate this tree for our dept door decorating contest 🎄 ☃️Happy holidays from the Lerit Lab ☃️
Photo of a door decorated with buffalo check gift wrap as background. On top is a pine tree cut from cardstock decorated with microscopy images of spindles, centrosomes, etc cut into shape of ornaments. Below are elf avatars of members of the lab
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Lerit Lab @lablerit.bsky.social · 24/11/2023
Day 4 of a week with no school: holiday! Advent calendars! 🎁 Turkey! 🦃 Big meal! 🥧🍽️
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Lerit Lab @lablerit.bsky.social · 23/11/2023
Day 3 of a week with no school: medical emergency! Watching lots of spider-man&friends! 🕸️ Unscheduled trip to the pediatrician! 🩺 Ear infection! 🙉 Baking pies! 🥧
Apple pie fresh from the oven
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Lerit Lab @lablerit.bsky.social · 21/11/2023
Day 2 of a week with no school. Trip to public library! 📚 Visit to Carlos Museum! 🐍 First try at a video game! 🎮 Playing Legos! 👮🏽
Boy pointing to a display at a museumHieroglyphics showing a snake with a severed headBoy playing Pac-ManLittle hands building a scene with Lego mini figures
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Lerit Lab @lablerit.bsky.social · 20/11/2023
Day 1 of a week with no school: local natural history museum. Vikings! 🗡️🛶 Outdoor trails! 🐾🐛 3D movie narrated by Morgan Freeman! ⛰️🌾
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Lerit Lab @lablerit.bsky.social · 17/11/2023
Our public library offers free make-and-take craft kits. My son and I put some holiday cards together after his early school dismissal. I believe we hit the appropriate level of tacky ☃️☃️☃️
Photo shows hand made greeting cards using holiday colors and motifs, such as red and green gingham, Santa, and nutcrackers. Various puffy stickers are on the cards and strewn in foreground
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Lerit Lab @lablerit.bsky.social · 16/11/2023
My son borrowed my phone to photograph his creation using his dad’s old legos. I love how he played with perspective and proportion here. Plus, his little ✋ blocking the lens 😂
Photo of lego mini figure taken through a Lego door; part of a hand obscures the upper right of the photo
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Lerit Lab @lablerit.bsky.social · 13/10/2023
Lerit Lab GS Taylor and Joey did a joint 3-min flash talk on their projects at our dept retreat today! It was our first retreat since…2017! Great job by organizers Katz, Seldin, and Wener. Two awesome keynotes, great venue, good times.
Graduate students Taylor and Joey stand next to a podium on a stage in front of a projection of their data slide
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Lerit Lab @lablerit.bsky.social · 07/10/2023
My kind of decorating is the kind you can eat. Pumpkin seeds taste great. Kid doesn’t like them, so more for me 🎃 The little pumpkin will become pie for Thanksgiving 🤤
Photo of front step decorated with carved and whole pumpkins, hand holding some roasted pumpkin seeds is in the foreground.
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